This is the Day of the Departed
by Mouth of Lightnin
Summary: It’s Day of the Departed! Lloyd’s first, so it has to be perfect.


**I dropped _everything _to write a fic dedicated to Day of the Departed. Hope you're happy. Sorry it's late, but my brain came up with it _hours _before we went trick-or-treating.**

**Hope you enjoy!**

——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

"Happy Day of the Departed!"

The whole team looked up as Lloyd, dressed up in his signature Charlie Brown's ghost costume, burst into the room. Under the holes cut into the bed sheet he wore, they could see his crimson eyes sparking with excitement.

Cole grinned. "You ready, Green Machine?"

"Yup! What are we doing again?"

It was, as Lloyd said, Day of the Departed. A common holiday in Ninjago, known by many. Kids of almost any age could dress up and scout their neighborhoods, accepting candy from anyone who was willing to give it. It was a happy holiday, for the most part. A time you could relax and just have some fun, maybe scaring a couple of your friends silly along the way.

Of course, as all holidays do, it was serious at times. You see, Day of the Departed doesn't only celebrate treats and costumes, but it is also a time to respect our ancestors. We honor them because if we never look to the past, we cannot envision the future. We take a moment to remember those we've lost, and those we are still fortunate to have.

But, that wasn't what was on the ninja's minds. Right now, they wanted to have a good time with their honorary little brother.

Jay chuckled. "Trick-or-treating, Lloyd. One perk about this day is _free candy_. And..." he leaned down and whispered to Lloyd, "I hear the kids with the best costumes get more candy."

Lloyd's eyes widened. "Really?"

Nya sighed. "Jay, stop it. That's why you'll get more candy, Lloyd, because your costume is amazing."

He beamed at that, clutching the pillowcase he would use for a basket.

The whole team had pitched in on this one. Because, this wasn't only their first Day of the Departed as a team, this was Lloyd's _very _first trick-or-treating. So, it had to go great.

Kai was a vampire. He had bought a nice coat and cape at a thrift store, and a phony pair of fangs he had used in the past. With his natural amber-brown eyes and general dramatic behavior, it was perfect for him.

Jay was a pirate. He had told the team many times that this theme was his favorite, because he _loved _pirates and thought they were _awesome_. He looked pretty good as well— a captain's hat sat on his head with frilly blue and yellow feathers, old boots and shirt he threw on, and even a cutlass he found in the junkyard and claimed to be real.

Nya was Moana. She wore a crown of wildflowers she and Jay had picked themselves, and a pretty blue locket that looked pretty close to the original. She even held a long wooden boat paddle they fished out of somewhere.

Cole was the Grim Reaper. This one was easy— all he had to get was an old black bathrobe, a mask, and one of the scythes used for training. Of course, they had to dull it. They didn't want anyone to get hurt. He also constantly complained about the mask being too hot, so he often kept it hanging from his neck.

And, finally, Zane was... a ninja. He didn't seem to get the idea of _'hey, you're supposed to dress up as something different'_ and claimed it was convenient, and made sense. They didn't argue.

Nya gave Lloyd the idea of being a Charlie Brown's ghost, and he accepted it wholeheartedly.

They set out at six to start trick-or-treating, in Cole's old neighborhood, because he said it was a nice neighborhood that gave lots of candy. They shrugged and said, "Why not?"

Lloyd was having a blast. Cole was right, the neighbors were nice, and they even passed that one neighbor that would hand out full-sized candy bars. Jay kept trying to take Kai's when he wasn't looking, but he hadn't succeeded so far.

"Hey, Kai?"

"Yeah?"

Lloyd's eyes were on Kai's basket. "Do you have any Butterfingers? Jay said the last lady had a ton, but I didn't get any."

Kai shoveled around his basket for a while, before pulling out two of them.

"Here," Lloyd reached for them, but Kai pulled them out of his reach at the last moment. "_Buuut_, you need to give _me _something first."

Lloyd's brow furrowed as he frowned. Muttering something incoherent, he reached into his pillowcase and pulled out a small "fun" sized candy bar.

"Take this. I don't want it."

"An Almond Joy for two Butterfingers? Hardly seems fair."

Lloyd groaned. "_Fine_. Want... Bit-O-Honey?"

"How about that Snickers bar I see you hiding?"

He looked as if the world was about to end. "_What_? Aww, but I really like this one..."

"Want these?" Kai asked, holding out his own candy.

"Yeah..."

Kai sighed. It was Lloyd's first time, might as well let him have it.

"Well, I guess I can just take the Almond Joy."

"_Yes_!"

There was a bit of silence. They had decided to take a break for a couple minutes, in a small park in the middle of town. Nya and Zane were having a civil conversation, while Jay looked as if he was trying to bribe Cole out of all his candy.

He di know why he asked the question.

"So, Lloyd, how are... you?"

"Me? Well, I'm okay. Trick-or-treating is fun n' all, but I know you guys are just trying to get my mind off training."

"What's so bad about that? Everyone needs a break once in a while."

"Well, yeah, but—" Lloyd gave an exaggerated sigh. "It's also my dad, y'know, and the big battle that you guys are trying to get me to forget about. I know it's still gonna happen. Nothing can stop it."

Kai bit his lip. Yeah, they were trying to get Lloyd's mind on other things, but they weren't trying to get him to _forget _about anything.

"Lloyd, we're not trying to keep you from anything, and we know you know that the Final Battle can't be stopped," Kai put a hesitant, reassuring hand on Lloyd's shoulder. "We're just trying to help you."

Another sigh. "I just wish I didn't have to fight him."

——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

It was almost eight o' clock now, and they had nearly plundered the entire town. All of the ninja were tired, except for Lloyd, of course.

"Think we should head home?" Cole asked.

"Probably," Kai replied. Nya was walking Lloyd to the next house, and Jay was trying one with the porch lights off across the street. Cole, Kai, and Zane trailed them a few houses behind. "I'm pooped. And people are starting to run out of candy."

"I would like to be home as well," Zane agreed. "Maybe we should get started on... the other traditions of Day of the Departed..."

Cole and Kai nodded and hummed in agreement. They understood.

——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

By the time they reached the Bounty, they had somehow managed to buy seven lanterns (they promised to buy one for Wu, who had asked if they would grab one on their way out), and were ready to let them off.

"Here, Lloyd," said Nya, handing him a pre-lit lantern. "Keep a hold of it. If you let go, you won't get it back."

"What do I do with it?" Lloyd asked.

The rest of the team waited patiently with their lanterns as Nya explained to him what to do. Her and her brother's lanterns were for their parents. Cole's was for his mom. Zane's, as they all knew, was for his dad. Jay would dedicate his to his parents, who were alive and healthy. But, Lloyd didn't know what to do with his.

Cole sent his off first. The luminescent red lit up like an old star in the sky. Kai and Nya sent theirs next, and Jay's shortly after. Zane stepped up next to Lloyd, placed a warm hand on his shoulder, and let his lantern go.

"To my father," he said.

Lloyd clenched his jaw, looking back down at his lantern.

"To Dad."

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

**And that's that. I'm sorry it's short and messy, I _just _came up with it.**

**I hope you guys had a great Halloween! And thank you for reading.**


End file.
